MGB commission leery of presbyteries freed from lines on a map

The Oct. 8 vote against recommending thatthe assembly take that step was 11-8. But then thecommission immediately began discussing waysto include non-geographic presbyteries amongother possibilities it might present for the churchto consider.Other concepts the commission might put forthinclude presbyteries with more “porous” boundariesthat are regionally rather than nationally based;missional orders; and covenant communities ratherthan separate presbyteries.Some evangelicals have said they want anoption that allows like-minded Presbyterians towork together in mission in presbyteries that wouldpledge not to ordain sexually active gays and lesbians,and they have encouraged the denominationto make that possible.The commission’s meeting in Indianapolis Oct.5-8 showed how conflicted some of its membersfeel about the idea of permitting non-geographicpresbyteries that are not language-based.Warren Cooper, a ruling elder from PhiladelphiaPresbytery, described non-geographic presbyteriesas “a practical solution to trying to keep thedenomination in some sort of way together.” Buthe also said it was a solution fraught with peril.“I find it to be antithetical to the principle ofmutual forbearance,” Cooper said. “I find it potentiallyto be the first very big step in the disintegrationof the denomination.”At the same time, he said, “I am very cognizantthat it has a place among other ideas,” adding that“it would be irresponsible for us as a commissionnot to put it forward.” He suggested the commissionprovide the General Assembly with argumentsfor and against the concept.The task force voted with a greater sense ofmomentum to recommend significant changes inthe role of synods — asking the General Assemblyto discontinue the role of synods as councils and tocreate five regional administrative commissions totake over ecclesiastical tasks.Any constitutional changes would have to beapproved by the General Assembly and by a majorityof the denomination’s 173 presbyteries. And thecommission won’t actually approve its final reportuntil its next meeting — scheduled for Feb. 2-4 inDallas — which means it could still make changesthen.Non-geographic presbyteries. The commission’sdebate over non-geographic presbyteries — currentlya very hot topic in the PC(USA) — reflectedboth pragmatic concerns and cornerstone beliefs.Evangelicals who contend the PC(USA) madea mistake in passing Amendment 10-A, whichremoved from the denomination’s constitution languagerequiring those being ordained to practicefidelity if married or chastity if single, have saidthat non-geographic presbyteries could give somepeople a way to stay in the denomination withoutviolating their consciences.James Harper, a teaching elder from Atlanta,said some evangelicals will see non-geographicpresbyteries as “a theological compromise” inwhich they have no interest. But others want tostay in the PC(USA), “to be able to thrive in missionand ministry together without the politics,”Harper said.Harper said evangelicals like him are askingthis question: “Can I stay in this denominationwith integrity and relief of conscience?”If a congregation wants to spend the time andmoney to fly representatives across the countryfor a presbytery meeting, “I think they ought tobe allowed to,” said John Vest, a teaching elderfrom Chicago. He said this could be “a new way ofdoing Protestant church” and that “what we havedone isn’t working. Our church is slowly dying.”Some pointed out that evangelicals already arepursuing other options and may not wait severalyears for the PC(USA) to figure things out.“We are speaking as though we can prevent itfrom happening,” said Jane Smith, a ruling elderfrom Riverside Presbytery in California. “I don’t

think we can. The train is well down the road.”Others asked whether forming presbyterieswith only like-minded people actually violatesfoundational Presbyterian principles and amountsto a temporary fix.“It’s a compromise — that’s not what weneed,” said Miriam Dolin, a ruling elder from SanFrancisco Presbytery. “That’s not creative, that’snot out-of-the-box” thinking, and “it’s going tochange us forever as a denomination … We are notcalled to live with people who only think like us.”Liza Hendricks, general presbyter for WesternReserve Presbytery, said she was “concerned withus developing two confessional churches under oneumbrella.”José Olagues, a teaching elder from GrandCanyon Presbytery, said that “I want to be at thetable with all of my brothers and sisters, all thechildren of God. Yet I’m being told that my form ofChristianity is not as good as that of another member.I need my sisters and brothers who disagreewith me at the table. Yet if they don’t want me, Idon’t know what to do. I wrestle with it.”Terry Newland, executive of the Synod ofLiving Waters, said thatfor him, “it’s not aboutforbearance or tolerance or enduring together,” buta belief “that God has gifted each one of us withgifts that will help us as a whole and will help me.It’s more a selfish thing … When we keep segregated,I am deprived of those spiritual gifts … It’sa yearning for more wholeness in my spiritual journey.It’s not about keeping the marriage together.”Newland also said this of the push to divide intolike-minded groups: “There’s nothing Presbyterianabout that. It’s building a Congregationalistchurch.”While the commission voted down a recommendationto ask the General Assembly to approvenon-geographic presbyteries, it’s also asking theAdvisory Committee on the Constitution to provideadvice on any constitutional issues or concernsthat such a proposal might raise.Synod restructuring. While the commissionmembers struggled with whether to approve nongeographicpresbyteries, support for the idea ofchanging the role of synods was evident as soon asthey began discussing the idea.Commission members praised it as a way offlattening the hierarchy of the PC(USA), potentiallysaving money, and reenergizing mission workat the regional level.The commission passed a series of recommendationsregarding synods that it plans to include inits final report.Many of these provisions would require constitutionalchanges, and the approval of both theassembly and a majority of the presbyteries. Whilethe commission won’t approve its final report untilFebruary, its moderator, Tod Bolsinger, a teachingelder from California, explained that approvingrecommendations with constitutional implicationsnow would give the Advisory Committee on theConstitution and other interested groups a chanceto respond to the recommendations before thereport is complete.The commission voted to recommend that:– Synods be discontinued as councils and theirecclesiastical functions be vested in five regionaladministrative commissions of the GeneralAssembly.– During a transition time, synods – in consultationwith their constituent presbyteries – wouldcreate and implement a transition plan totransfer assets, funds, projects and programs,including those relating to racial ethnic ministries,to appropriate entities. Those transitionplans would be submitted to the 2016 GeneralAssembly for its approval.– The authority and intent of the Mid-CouncilsCommission be vested in these regional commissions“in order to facilitate churches andpresbyteries to build partnerships and realignwhere necessary” to fulfill their missionalobjectives.– Those regional commissions have the powerand authority to “enforce the church’s commitmentto inclusiveness and representation,”including forming committees on representation.– The General Assembly be authorized to createfive regional judicial commissions to serveas courts of appeal of decisions of presbyterypermanent judicial commissions, and as courtsof original jurisdiction in remedial cases againstpresbyteries, or upon reference from presbyteryjudicial commissions.While the recommendations don’t state this, onepossibility might be that the five regional commissionsmight be drawn along roughly the same linesas the districts among which the biennial meetingsof the General Assembly are rotated.Commission members said they would likefaster action but acknowledged changing synodstructure would take several years, given the needfor the assembly and a majority of presbyteries toapprove and allowing time for transition.

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